NFL

Titans bulk up line to help defense get stingier

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP)

Tired of being pushed around and run over last season, the
Tennessee Titans want to make sure that doesn't happen in 2013.

So they got bigger up front.

And wider.

The Titans had only one starter on the defensive line who pushed
the scale to 300 pounds last season, so they brought in three
veterans - all 310 or heavier. Tackle Sammie Hill really was their
biggest signing at 6-foot-4 and weighing in at a hefty 329.

''We got some length. We got some height. We're big,'' defensive
coordinator Jerry Gray said Tuesday as the Titans opened their
three-day minicamp. ''We got about three or four guys that's about
315, which is good. Offensive linemen are getting bigger and
defensive linemen are getting smaller, and that's not a good sign
when they want to stop the run.''

Tennessee didn't stop much of anything in 2012 when the Titans
set a franchise-record for most points allowed in a season with
471. The Titans also ranked 27th in total yards allowed per game,
giving up 347.2 yards. Opponents ran for 114.9 yards per game and
averaged 231.3 yards passing.

With the Titans spending more time on the field than any other
defense in the NFL, the line with an average weight of 281 pounds
also was worn down over the season. So the Titans let 6-2,
294-pound Sen'Derrick Marks leave as a free agent. They signed Hill
along with the 6-8, 315-pound Ropati Pitoitua and Antonio Johnson,
who tips the scale at 310.

Assistant coach Tracy Rocker credits general manager Ruston
Webster and his scouts for bringing in big people not only on
defense but offense as well. He said it helps having the bigger
linemen to play on first and second down before bringing in the
smaller guys to help rush the passer on third down.

''This is a big man's game, and everybody tends to think it's a
little man's game,'' Rocker said. ''It's a big man game when it
starts over the ball. That's where you see everybody in the Super
Bowl. They're huge, and that's the goal to be huge and be smart and
then have a chance to go with a smaller crew when it's time to go
after the quarterback.''

The Titans still have Derrick Morgan (6-3 and 278 pounds) and
Kamerion Wimbley (6-4, 255) at end to chase the quarterback. But
Ropati and Lavar Edwards, a 6-4, 277-pound end drafted in the
fifth-round out of LSU, offer up some size to allow the Titans to
better rotate their linemen keeping them fresh.

Wimbley was Tennessee's big free agent signing a year ago, and
he moved from linebacker to defensive end. Wimbley had six sacks
and 38 tackles, but coaches expect more out of him this season
given more of a chance to chase the quarterback. Wimbley certainly
has noticed the size of his new teammates.

''This is a physical game,'' Wimbley said. ''It's grueling to go
out there and play the whole game, and I think it's great to have
guys who are bigger who can come in and help out. It wears the
opponents down. You're moving more weight over a longer period of
time. Eventually, you're going to wear somebody down.''

The chance at more playing time is what helped convince Hill to
sign with the Titans, leaving Detroit where he played behind the
likes of Ndamukong Suh, Corey Williams and Nick Fairley. Hill, who
also is closer to his home in Alabama, got only 18 starts in his 59
career games in Detroit.

''Knowing somebody wants to rely on you to do that makes you
feel good,'' Hill said. ''It feels great to have the
opportunity.''

And the Titans have made it clear that Hill has a top priority
in the middle.

''Don't let them run the football,'' Gray said.

Linemen are limited in the offseason on how much they can bang
on each other. That won't come until they can put pads on in
training camp, but Hill said he has been impressed by how hard his
new teammates are working. He remembers how hard his linemates
worked in Detroit and likes what he sees so far in Tennessee.

''The No. 1 thing you see everybody wants it,'' Hill said. ''All
these guys want to win, they want to win right now. You can't ever
project nothing. You have to go out and do your job and the chips
fall where they may. You can tell the guys want it, and that's a
big deal for me.''

Notes: The Titans hosted nearly 200 soldiers from Fort Campbell
on the first day of their three-day minicamp. Soldiers were greeted
by coach Mike Munchak, given a boxed lunch and got an up-close view
of practice on the sideline. They got autographs after the session
with one soldier chasing down Munchak for an autograph after the
coach talked to reporters. Some of the soldiers were from the
Wounded Warriors recovering from combat injuries, while others were
from the 101st Airborne Division, 5th Special Forces Group, 160th
SOAR Aviation regiment also known as Night Stalkers and the
helicopter regiment that flies most of the military's special
operations.

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